SSAF projects

SSAF revenue is allocated to five (5) program areas that align with UOW strategic priorities, UOW SSAF spending priorities and student priorities.

Additionally, revenue is allocated to regional campuses, reflecting that collected at the campuses and aligned with the strategic program areas.

Program areas

A whole of institution approach that successfully connects students to career, enterprise and workplace learning strategies, across each of UOW’s faculties and campuses.

  • Provide support services (ie counselling, triage support, Safe and Respectful Communities initiatives);
  • holistic services (ie mental health programs, Indigenous wellbeing support);
  • access to legal advice/advocacy services;and
  • events and initiatives that enhance the student experience, health and wellbeing.

Provide students with programs, workshops and resources that support academic learning.

Provide an environment that enhances the student experience via support of social and co-curricular activities across each of UOW’s on-shore campuses.

Engagement and campus events may include:

  • support for student clubs and societies;
  • elected student representative bodies; and
  • co-curricular activities that enhance experience and employability.

Addressing the growing need for creative, flexible and interactive informal learning spaces for students to study and collaborate.

2023 SSAF funded projects

Enhancing Student Career Readiness, Employability and UOWx

Final Year Career Ready Program

A year-long program, that will give students the best chance of success in an increasingly uncertain labour market, uses the evidence based UOW Career Development Learning Framework (CDLF) developed and piloted in 2019/2020.

This program of curated material tailored for final year students includes:

  • Embedded content in final year subjects
  • Reflective 'extracted employability' moodle activity for all subjects
  • Co-curricular modules & group coaching
  • Career Accelerate
  • The Future of Work Series
  • Core Skills workshops
  • Careers Expos
  • Jobs off campus program
  • Univative Winter
  • Spring Alumni Mentoring Program

Suite of Career Development Services for ALL UOW Students

The suite of services provides CDL opportunities scaffolded for students dependent upon their level of skills and capabilities. Opportunities include:

UOWX - Gain experience, develop skills and be recognised

Find roles, programs and workshops beyond the classromm to develop personally and professionally, enhancing your university experience.

UOW Pitch X

Learnings for students about entrepreneurial thinking and tools – specifically the skill of pitching an idea. We are using a format that allows for maximum creativity and an ability for any student to develop confidence in developing presentation skills around any idea. It has proven a very effective method of boosting self-confidence and also the critical thinking skills about what makes for a good idea – or a really bad one – that can still be pitched to be as compelling as possible.

The light-hearted approach has proven to be a very engaging approach to teach these critical job skills and also life skills. This is supported in the feedback from previous programs.

Pitch X also provides an opportunity to learn more about the iAccelerate program that UOW offers to students and getting involved in programs and potentially with start-up companies that are resident in the program and getting inspired to do their own start- up. We have seen students return to startup a company after this experience.

 

Indigenous cultural identity health and wellbeing

Woolyungah Indigenous Centre will provide meals/food vouchers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in need of support.

Emergency Housing Support

The Student Housing Officer provides personalised accommodation support and advice to students such as availability, quality, and nature of accommodation for students.

Building and Maintaining Safe and Respectful Communities

The Safe and Respectful Communities team is responsible for leading the University’s work to prevent sexual assault and harassment from occurring on our campuses, and for providing coordinated response and support if it does happen.

Representative Sports Program

UOW PULSE promotes, supports and oversees students involvement in representative sport across the following platforms:

  1. UniSport National intervarsity sport
  2. UOW representative sport clubs in local competition

Program reduces the financial burden on students who represent UOW in the sporting arena.

Metropolitan Campuses – Housing Support and Emergency Accommodation

  • Provide 'one off' hotel accommodation to student in need of emergency accommodation support.
  • Contact your Metropolitan Student Support Coordinator:

Enhancing Student Health, Welfare

Provides services that enhance student welfare and safety. The program will deliver the following services for students:

  1. Student Mental Health Counselling through a partnership with Lifeline Direct
  2. Free 24/7 access to UOW Student Wellbeing Support Line
  3. Access to QPR and Mental Health First Aid Training to students
  4. Free student legal advice

Enhancing Student Advocacy

The Student Advocacy Service (SAS) is a free, confidential and independent service for all UOW students. The SAS provides advocacy and referral for a range of academic, procedural and administrative issues.

Student Support Coordinator, metropolitan campuses

Student Support Coordinators are experts in connecting you to support services.  Get free, confidential advice and support, not matter what the issue.

Welfare Support

Provides support to UOW students who identify as being in distress when presenting to UOW service touch point and are provided with welfare support point of contact.  Support activity may include:

  • Immediate de-escalation and support for students in extreme distress
  • Triage and referral to appropriate internal UOW support services to ensure case management by Tier 2 support services
  • Referral to external support services if appropriate
  • Ongoing review of Academic Consideration submissions to ensure that secondary sources of information are vetted for welfare issues and appropriate follow up support is provided

Student Partnership to Enhance Study Skills

Program will assist students to develop a foundation that will equip and empower them to make informed decisions and confidently navigate UOW. Underpinned by a student-staff partnership model, this program will provide a range of peer to peer services and program to enhance students’ skills for study. Services for students include:

Wellbeing PULSE Activities

A series of events, activities and workshops delivered by UniLife to help students master the life/study balance. In addition, students have ready access to wellness resources throughout the year.

Campus engagement (Innovation Campus)

Events and activities delivered by UniLife at Innovation Campus.

UOW Clubs and Societies (including Faculty Clubs)

Funding allocated to Faculty clubs and social clubs and societies seeking additional funding for initiatives and or activities.

Regional campuses engagement fund

Funding allocated to each of UOW’s regional campuses, to be used for activities that promote engagement. Activities and promotion are delivered by each campus, for more details please contact:

Batemans Bay
Bega
Shoalhaven
Southern Highlands

Student association/Student representatives administration assistant

Administration support provided to the Wollongong Undergraduate Students Association and Wollongong University Postgraduate Association. The position also provides support for students wishing to access Student Advocacy Service.

Student Representation Coordinator Support

Provide elected student representatives via the Student Advisory Council (SAC), with ongoing support and advice to assist in facilitating the relationship between student representatives, the student body and the University.

Southern Sydney campus engagement 

Delivers campus based events and activities for students enrolled at UOW's Southern Sydney campus.

SAC training and honorarium

To ensure the Student Advisory Council (SAC) has the resources available to build a collegial group, a series of training and activities will be designed to facility team building, leadership development, activation and engagement events across each of UOW on-shore campuses. A modest honorarium payment to be provided to elected student representatives.

South Western Sydney campus engagement 

Delivers campus based events and activities for students enrolled at UOW's South Western Sydney - Liverpool campus.

Sydney CBD Campus Engagement

Delivers campus based events and activities for student enrolled at UOW’s Sydney CBD campus.

Student Communications - Central feedback platform

Delivering student focused central feedback platform with students engaged in delivering the program of works.

24/7 Library (Exam period)

Provide additional access to the library during autumn and spring exam periods.

Orientation (Go Fest)

Delivering enhanced Orientation in 2023.  It’s Go Time is a week-by-week schedule of events such as:

  • enrolment advice
  • finding and accessing resources and opportunities
  • engaging with on-campus activities and events
  • finding your crew in our various Clubs and Societies
  • building friendships

New informal student spaces have been created in Buildings 1, 19 and 20. The new spaces allow students to study before entering teaching areas.

 

 

Building 1

Tables and lounge chairs

Building 19

Student sitting in chair

Building 20

lounge seating

Enhancing Student Career Readiness and Employability

Final Year Career Ready Program

A year-long program, that will give students the best chance of success in an increasingly uncertain labour market, uses the evidence based UOW Career Development Learning Framework (CDLF) developed and piloted in 2019/2020.

This program of curated material tailored for final year students includes:

  • Embedded content in final year subjects
  • Reflective 'extracted employability' moodle activity for all subjects
  • Co-curricular modules & group coaching
  • Career Accelerate
  • The Future of Work Series
  • Core Skills workshops
  • Careers Expos
  • Jobs off campus program
  • Univative Winter
  • Spring Alumni Mentoring Program

Suite of Career Development Services for ALL UOW Students

The suite of services provides CDL opportunities scaffolded for students dependent upon their level of skills and capabilities. Opportunities include:

UOW Pitch X

Learnings for students about entrepreneurial thinking and tools – specifically the skill of pitching an idea. We are using a format that allows for maximum creativity and an ability for any student to develop confidence in developing presentation skills around any idea. It has proven a very effective method of boosting self-confidence and also the critical thinking skills about what makes for a good idea – or a really bad one – that can still be pitched to be as compelling as possible.

The light-hearted approach has proven to be a very engaging approach to teach these critical job skills and also life skills. This is supported in the feedback from previous programs.

Pitch X also provides an opportunity to learn more about the iAccelerate program that UOW offers to students and getting involved in programs and potentially with start-up companies that are resident in the program and getting inspired to do their own start- up. We have seen students return to startup a company after this experience.